Endorsed by Palm Beach-Treasure Coast AFL-CIO, St. Lucie County Classroom Teachers, Plumbers & Pipefitters Local 630, Laborers International Union of North America, Ironworkers Local 402, Sheet Metals Workers Local 32, International Union of Police Association, Teamsters Local 769 and International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers local unions 728, 1191 and 627.

ST. LUCIE COUNTY — The day after Bob Benton and Chris Dzadovsky are done facing each other on the campaign trail, they may be meeting again in the courtroom.

Prosecutors have called Benton as a witness to testify about statements Dzadovsky made during a Scripps Treasure Coast Newspapers editorial board endorsement interview that may be relevant in his criminal trial, set to begin Nov. 7. Assistant State Attorney Lev Evans could not be reached for comment as to what statements they're interested in."The last place I want to be the morning after the election is in court," said Benton, the Fort Pierce mayor who is running for the St. Lucie County Commission District 1 seat. "I didn't want to be associated with (the case). It's very frustrating."

Only time will tell whether Dzadovsky's pending criminal case will factor into voters' decision on Nov. 6.

Dzadovsky said his criminal charge has nothing to do with his job as a commissioner.

"This is really not a campaign issue at all," he said. "It's a personal matter for me."

Gov. Rick Scott suspended Dzadovsky without pay for nearly four months after he was arrested on a third-degree felony charge that later was reduced to a misdemeanor of taking a pool heater from the home of his deceased ex-fiancée.

Benton easily won the Republican primary with more than 60 percent of the vote, but some say he'll have a tougher time unseating incumbent Dzadovsky, despite his own perceived blemish. Though cleared of an ethics complaint of nepotism, Benton was at the center of a controversy about the city hiring his son, Kori, for a part-time planning department job.

Benton defended himself by saying former City Manager David Recormade the decision to hire his son, who Benton said since has proved himself to be a good employee.

Dzadovsky said he prides himself on running a "clean" campaign and declined to comment on Benton's dismissed ethics complaint. Referring to Dzadovsky's criminal charge, Benton said elected officials should be held to a higher standard.

"My honesty and integrity are what we need in office. ... Whenever you jeopardize your position, it could come back and get you," Benton said. "He made a bad decision, and he got caught, but I will leave it up to the voters to decide. ... The only thing I question to (Dzadovsky) is what were you thinking? Why were you not thinking?"

Financial support is tipping slightly in favor of Benton, who by Oct. 12 had collected $4,135 more than Dzadovsky. Benton said his contributions came from the "ordinary working people" he has dealt with over the years. He also said the campaign has been more difficult than his previous four because of the economic downturn.

"People do not have the income that they had in the last 10 or 15 years," Benton said.

Dzadovsky said his main contributors are professionals, bankers and "regular ol' people" who approve of the way he has done his job.

"It's working people and working families," Dzadovsky said, "and those people endorsed me because they believe that I believe in the working family."

DIFFERING EXPERIENCE

Dzadovsky, who was unchallenged in the Democratic primary, said he has represented residents in an "exemplary" way, and they will vote for him based on his performance.

"Four years in this position, I've completed the entire platform that I set out to do when I ran," Dzadovsky said.

His goals were pursuing renewable energies, achieving sustainable government, reducing the county's budget and decreasing the county's millage rate. Dzadovsky admitted more could be done in terms of creating jobs and streamlining budgets, but he already was part of the decision to consolidate the county departments from 20 to nine.

"I don't see my opponent doing that," Dzadovsky said.

Benton said his background and experience — two terms as a city commissioner and two terms as mayor — outweigh Dzadovsky's first term as a county commissioner.

"Four years gets you in the door, and you might start learning," said Benton, who bested Dzadovsky for mayor in 2007. "You can't just come into town eight or nine years ago and think you're going to know Fort Pierce. I've been here my whole life, and I'm still learning every day."

Although Benton, 55, was born in New York, he has lived in the county for more than 40 years.

Benton said he has helped to make cuts at the city while maintaining the same level of service and lower the city's crime rate during a time of economic downturn. He said he understands both cities and the county better because he's lived in the area most of his life.

Dzadovsky, 51, said not having an outside perspective can be a disadvantage.

"If I continue to maintain my small-town mentality of what it used to be," Dzadovsky said, "I can't look forward into what we're going to be."

Born in Pittsburgh, Dzadovsky began stopping in the area in 1994 on route to a dive resort he owned in the Florida Keys and moved to the county in 2003. He said he is among the 60 percent of residents who moved to the area. Dzadovsky said he understands the challenges of old cities when their infrastructure starts to fail and cost taxpayers money. He also said he has "vast experience in world government."

"I've seen what has and hasn't worked in other places," Dzadovsky said. "As a former airline professional, I've traveled the world. I've seen how other governments work, even in Europe."

Both candidates hope voters stick to the issues, such as the development of the Port of Fort Pierce. Although Benton and Dzadovsky don't agree on potential plans, they are concerned about the environment of the Indian River Lagoon.

Benton, who said he doesn't want any additional cargo, spearheaded an effort to bring the mega-yacht industry to the seaport. Having grown up and maintained his current residence on South Hutchinson Island, he cares about the water, he said.

Dzadovsky said he's not "married" to the mega-yacht option and doesn't want to be "pigeonholed" into one possibility. He plans to take in all information and community input available about port possibilities before he makes a decision.

"I don't want to be put in a box to say it's going to be mega-yachts or it's going to be cargo or it's going to be a fishing port," Dzadovsky said. "It's got to be environmentally sensitive, whatever comes of the port."